W National Park
| W Transborder Park | |
|---|---|
IUCN category II (national park) | |
 Mekrou River in the W-National Park | |
 IUCN Protected Areas of the WAP complex | |
| Location | Niger-Burkina Faso-Benin |
| Nearest city | Kandi (Benin), Diapaga (Burkina Faso), Tapoa (Niger) |
| Coordinates | 12°31′31″N 2°39′48″E / 12.52528°N 2.66333°E |
| Area | 10,000 km2 (3,900 sq mi) |
| Established | August 4, 1954 |
| Governing body | ECOPAS, Governments of Niger, Burkina Faso, and Benin |
| Official name | W Regional Park |
| Type | Natural |
| Criteria | vii, ix, x |
| Designated | 1996 (20th session) |
| Reference no. | 749bis |
| State Party | Niger |
| Region | Africa |
| Official name | Parc national du W |
| Designated | 30 April 1987 |
| Reference no. | 355 |
| Official name | Parc National du W |
| Designated | 27 June 1990 |
| Reference no. | 492 |
| Official name | Site Ramsar du Complexe W |
| Designated | 2 February 2007 |
| Reference no. | 1668 |
The W Regional Park is a major national park in West Africa. It is formed around a meander in the River Niger shaped like a "W". The park includes areas of the three countries Niger, Benin and Burkina Faso.
The W National Park of Niger was formed by decree on 4 August 1954. In 1996 it was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In the three nations, the Regional park covers about 10,000 km². Almost no people live in this area.
Fauna[change | change source]
The park is known for its large mammals, including aardvarks, baboons, buffalo, caracal, cheetahs, elephants, hippopotamuses, leopards, lions, serval and warthogs. The park has a home for some of West Africa's last wild African Elephants. The W Park used to have packs of the endangered Painted Hunting Dog. The National Park is one of the last strongholds for the Northwest African cheetah. There is a small but increasing population of at least 15-25 animals of this rare cat in the park.[1]
The W area is also known for its bird populations. There are over 350 species identified in the park.[2]
References[change | change source]
- ↑ Belbachir, F. (2008). "Acinonyx jubatus ssp. hecki". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2008. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 4 February 2009.
- ↑ United Nations Environment Programme-World Conservation Monitoring Centre (Content Partner); Mark McGinley (Topic Editor). 2009. "'W' National Park, Niger." In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). online Archived 2009-11-29 at the Wayback Machine
Other websites[change | change source]
Media related to W National Park at Wikimedia Commons